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06/04/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - If you use the 20/20 vision that hindsight provides, it's pretty clear why the Los Angeles Lakers lost the 2008 NBA Finals to the Boston Celtics -- they got punched in the mouth.
The defensive-minded Celtics were simply far more physical than the Lakers back then and Doc Rivers went into that series with a simple game plan: beat up LA and make someone other than Kobe Bryant win the thing.
The '08 Lakers' frontline, minus the oft-injured Andrew Bynum, was manhandled by Kevin Garnett and Company, and Bryant was double- and triple-teamed every time he touched the ball with the intent of getting it out of his hands.
When Kobe eventually lost confidence in his teammates and put his head down to drive to the basket, he was met by two or three big bodies that weren't shy about handing out a lick or two. The result was Bryant taking contested shot after contested shot and finishing that set shooting just over 40 percent.
Ron Artest was watching.
The eccentric, often outspoken Artest was safely tucked away in Sacramento at the time and his signature grit and toughness wasn't a problem for the Celtics.
A quick trip to south Texas ensued for Artest, where he helped the Houston Rockets advance past the first round of the postseason for the first time in 11 seasons last year. He also happened to get ejected from both Games 2 and 3 of the Western Conference semifinals against the Lakers for tangling with Bryant and Pau Gasol.
LA went on to win a hard-fought seven-game series against the Rockets and eventually earned their 15th NBA championship. Artest clearly garnered the respect of the organization, however, and the Lakers signed him to a five- year deal worth $33 million with the assumption he would bring the same defensive mindset and intensity to Hollywood.
Whether warranted or not, Western Conference teams are considered more skilled but not as tough as their Eastern Counterparts. You can debate that but the Celtics certainly came into the 2010 NBA Finals with a certain cockiness, thinking they were the harder bunch.
That all changed 27 seconds into the Lakers 102-89 Game 1 win when Artest tangled arms with Boston's top offensive threat, Paul Pierce. Both players hit the hardwood simultaneously and were whistled for a double technical.
"That's not a tone that we want to set," Artest said. "We want to set a tone of basketball. At that point, I was a little emotional and I had a little bit of anxiety at that point, and I was fired up. I would still rather set the tone with basketball."
A very mature and measured response from a player not known for holding back.
In reality, this time it was the Celtics getting smacked in the mouth and Artest was front and center throwing the punch, His physical play most definitely set the tone as the defending- champion Lakers matched Boston's highly-publicized defensive intensity from the first minute to the last.
"My role is to play aggressively and to play good team basketball and to play hard," Artest said. "You play hard, you are tough already."
Your move Boston.
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Albert Pujols to be This Year's Home Run Champ Says Online Sportsbook
Barry Bonds is a 50-1 long shot to be this year's home run champ odds. The favorite to be this year's home run champ is none other than Albert Pujols, however.
Now that Barry Bonds is signed and in Giants camp, it is on to his pursuit of all of sports most prestigious records: the all-time home run mark. Bonds sits just 21 homers shy of tying Hank Aaron for the career mark at 755. Word out of Giants’ camp is that Bonds is the healthiest he has been in a few years. Bonds is just two seasons removed from his injury riddled 2005 campaign where he played in only 14 games and hit only 5 home runs. He did come back last year and had a solid season hitting .270 with 26 bombs. All eyes will be on Bonds this spring and summer not only because of his home run chase but his highly publicized steroid abuse allegations. If and when Bonds breaks the record, he surely will not get the positive attention one should for breaking a record that was once thought of as “unbreakable”. Despite Bonds decent season last year, he is just 50-1 at MySportsbook.com to lead the MLB in long balls this season.
Not surprisingly, the favorites to go deep the most times this season are Albert Pujols 5-1, Ryan Howard 6-1, David Ortiz 8-1 and Alex Rodriguez 12-1. With 49 homers, Pujols finished second in the National League behind Howard (58). Pujols is considered the favorite due to the consistent power numbers that he has posted since breaking into the league in 2001. Also one must consider the fact that he played in 16 fewer games then Howard did due to an injury. Howard smashed 58 homers in his first complete season of big league play en route to the National League MVP odds award. He silenced his critics by successfully hitting left-handed pitching. Howard also displayed the ability to use his power to the opposite field. Two attributes which should keep Howard amongst the league leaders in long balls for years to come. From the American League representatives, David Ortiz leads the field. Ortiz was second in the majors last year with 54 home runs. Except for 1999 when he only played in 10 games, Ortiz has improved on his home run numbers each year he has been in the majors (1997).
Be sure to log onto online sports betting site MySportsbook.com to check out the odds for who will lead the MLB in home runs this season. Below is just a sample of the players listed. With the highest credit card rates in the industry, MySportsbook.com is the place to bet on baseball this summer.
World Series odds
Adam Dunn 15-1
Albert Pujols 5-1
Alex Rodriguez 12-1
Alfonso Soriano 15-1
Andruw Jones 25-1
Barry Bonds 50-1
Carlos Delgado 40-1
David Ortiz 8-1
Jermaine Dye 40-1
Ken Griffey Jr. 100-1
Lance Berkman 40-1
Manny Ramirez 20-1
Richie Sexson 40-1
Ryan Howard 6-1
Travis Hafner 20-1
Vladimir Guerrero 40-1
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.
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